Convicted Canadian Serial Killer Robert Pickton Dies After Prison Assault at 74

Robert Pickton, the Canadian serial killer convicted of the murders of six women, has died at the age of 74 after being assaulted in prison, authorities reported on Wednesday. Pickton, also known as "Willie" Pickton, was involved in a crime spree near Vancouver in the late 1990s and early 2000s, where he brought female victims to his pig farm.

The Correctional Service of Canada stated that Pickton, an inmate at Port-Cartier Institution in Quebec, succumbed to injuries sustained from an assault by another inmate on May 19. The 51-year-old inmate responsible for the assault was in custody following the incident. Pickton was initially assaulted at the maximum-security federal institution and then transferred to an outside hospital for medical treatment. The correctional services have initiated an investigation into the assault.

Criminal Conviction

Robert Pickton was convicted of six counts of second-degree murder and was handed a life sentence in 2007. The maximum parole ineligibility period for his sentence was set at 25 years. He was accused of the murders of at least 26 women, and the police's investigation into the disappearances of dozens of women led to the search of Pickton's farm in Port Coquitlam more than 22 years ago.

During the investigation, the remains or DNA of 33 women, many of whom had been picked up from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, were found on Pickton's pig farm in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia. Despite previously claiming to have killed a total of 49 women, Pickton was convicted for the murders of six women: Sereena Abotsway, Mona Wilson, Andrea Joesbury, Brenda Ann Wolfe, Georgina Papin, and Marnie Frey.

This incident shook the nation, and many questions remain unanswered about the extent of Pickton's crimes and the impact on the victims' families.